National Public Radio has fired analyst Juan Williams over recent comments about Muslims on the Fox News Channel.

The incident happened when Williams appeared on Fox News' "The O'Reilly Factor" earlier this week and defended host Bill O'Reilly's claim that there's a "Muslim problem in the world."

"I think you're right," Williams said. "Political correctness can lead to some kind of paralysis where you don't address reality."

Williams, who has written extensively on race and civil rights, went on to say he gets nervous on commercial flights when he sees "people who are in Muslim garb" who are "identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims."

Although Williams was quick to point out that not all Muslims are "extremists," NPR found his comments unacceptable and terminated his contract.

"His remarks on The O'Reilly Factor this past Monday were inconsistent with our editorial standards and practices, and undermined his credibility as a news analyst with NPR," NPR said in a statement.

Conservative blogger Eric Ericson defended Williams, saying his history as a civil rights activists was a clear indication the former NPR news analyst was not a bigot.

"All Juan Williams did is say both exactly how he feels and how many, many other Americans feel on this subject," Erickson wrote on his "Red State" blog. "The man's body of work makes clear he is no bigot. But we sure can't offend Muslims can we?"